August 2006 Archives

No, I'm not going Katherine Harris on y'all, this is a shameless plug for Kurt's new store.

I really should have mentioned this a while back, but in my laziness I never really got around to it. So, yknow, sorry Kurt.

So this morning I woke up and said, "where are my pants?"

Fuck Kansas.

Dear LAWD am I ready to be done with that place.

So we get an email from our new Realtor(tm) the other day...

This will probably be funny to like, three people. But when has that ever stopped me before?

Right.

So, anyone else think it's funny that the second hurricane of the season is Hurricane John?

Dr. Hassett does.

I had the strangest dream last night.

I was aboard the Starship Enterprise (E, if you must know) and we were doing something I can't recall on some planet that isn't terribly important.

Anyway, I'm on the ship and Dr. Crusher turns to me and says:

"Manifest Destiny's working out a lot better this time around."

My Tia Julia had a stroke Friday afternoon.

And I'm incredibly confused by this.

Right about now, nearly all of you- regardless of how well you know me or how long we've known each other- are wondering the same thing. "Who?"

Tour de Acoma Training '06
Day: Four
Days Until Registration: 22
Days Until Race: 31
Miles Riden: 8.0
Notes: One Mechanical Breakdown

Tour de Acoma Training '06
Day: Five
Days Until Registration: 21
Days Until Race: 30
Miles Riden: 8.0
Notes: NO! Mechanical Breakdowns!

Tour de Acoma Training '06
Day: Six
Days Until Registration: 20
Days Until Race: 29
Miles Riden: 0.0
Notes: Rest Day.

I've been waiting for today all year long. Yes, I know Maddenoliday was Tuesday, but today is BIGGER than that.

I know it's tacky and really insensitive. And for that I appologize. But, for a kid who grew up longing to find one of those silly license plate keychains with his name on it...this is huge.

What am I talking about?

Tour de Acoma Training '06
Day: Three
Days Until Registration: 23
Days Until Race: 32
Miles Riden: 8.0
Notes: One Mechanical Breakdown

Tour de Acoma Training '06
Day: Two
Days Until Registration: 24
Days Until Race: 33
Miles Riden: 6.0
Notes: One Mechanical Breakdown

Tour de Acoma Training '06
Day: One
Days Until Registration: 25
Days Until Race: 34
Miles Riden: 1.2
Notes: One Mechanical Breakdown

My wife. My wife is so judgmental that she even judges people in her dreams.

It's been an interesting dream weekend for us. Sunday morning I had this dream that I was hanging out with Nena and Drieg when Drieg turns to me and says, "dude, you're wife's water just broke."

So we take Nena to the hospital all calm and shit and after we get there there's no one at the ER doors and the ER is like a million miles from the doors to the ER and I run around looking for a wheelchair cuz Nena's not moving so fast. I find one, strap her in and RUN LIKE HELL all the while freaking out cuz I didn't know Nena was pregnant and how can she be pregnant and I CAN'T BE A FATHER!!!! Then, in the dream, I realize that it is a dream so I chill out and go with things.

No, Nena's not pregnant. Don't worry.

In other news, I have a job. Our long national nightmare has finally come to an end. It's retail, it's not what I wanted and I will be referring to it as The Minuteman. If you think real hard, it'll make sense. Also, thanks to CK for coming up HUGE on the reference scene. Apparently he was the only reference who returned a phone call to the GM at The Minuteman at all. It got to the point where my new boss called me up and said "Hi Nenie. I want to hire you but I NEED another reference to call me back. I've only spoken to CK, who loves you. Give me some phone numbers..."

So I did.

I start Wednesday.

I got the call while down in The Q on Saturday. Nena was in Cruces for a baby shower and I'd spent the morning campaigning for Antonio and the afternoon at a Carleton New Mexico Club thingy getting career advice from people where were amazingly less than helpful a few months ago over email.

Seriously, do they understand how much better my life could have been had they offered to take my resume around to their bosses in APRIL when I ASKED THEM FOR THAT!

No, I'm cool. I'm chill.

Anyway, I was bumming around the world's most poorly designed commerce-o-plex (I-25 between Montgomery and Jefferson) looking to kill time in case anyone in town decided to call me back with plans for the evening (no one ever called back) so I popped into REI to look at hiking boots I tell myself I'm gonna get in the spring so I can, yknow, hike more since I live in the mountains.

Anyway, walking into the store I see something out of the corner of my eye. It's a poster for the Tour de Acoma, a bike race across the Acoma Reservation next month. I read the poster and see that they have a 25 mile race and a $30 entry fee. Now, I know I'm not a bike racer, BUT I've been meaning to get Black 5 out of the garage and onto the road since I moved out here, and he's all tuned up and ready to rock. So, why not, right? I can get into shape for a 25 mile, paved run across the Rez in a month. And it's not like I'm looking to win the thing. I'm just looking for an excuse to get into better shape.

So, I'm training. Starting today. If I can DO 25 miles by the pre-registration deadline, I'll enter the race. If not, I'll train for next year and do the 50 mile. Right? Right.

Also, I'm starting my own cycling team for the event. Dixie Bar Cycling- We're always doping, cuz we're so dope. I'll be designing shirts for the event. Anyone interested?

I've been collecting things for my .sig file on my outgoing emails for years now, but I hadn't really been rotating them until, well, a few days ago. This got me to thinking, maybe I should put them all out here...so here they are.

Last weekend we went up to Chicago for CHUCKGUNDER's baptism. Every time we've managed to get away for a day or two we've said that it was something that we really needed and it's been true every time we've said it. When we got away for our anniversary, we needed time away from everything. This weekend, we needed time with our familia.

With that in mind, we headed out to Cubero Friday. Nena's parents are in California at the moment so it was nice to see the familia but not have to actually spend a lot of time with them. Plus, it was a great chance to drop off surplus boxes and kitchen stuff.

Seriously, if you need utensils or dishes or small electrics or something, drop me a line. I could cut you a nice deal on stuff we just don't have the space for anymore.

White Guy Doesn't Understand the Issue, film at 11.

Basically, this Senator from VA saw a non-white person in the crowd, knew this non-white person in a very white crowd was working for his opponent, pointed out the person in the crowd, denies that the name he made up for the non-white dude was racist.

He's probably right, he wasn't racist, he was ignorant. When he told the guy "welcome to America" he was pointing out and capitalizing on white privilege. The real issue here, and one that CNN is incapable of grasping, is that the Senator succeeded in making his opponent's volunteer feel like less of a human being.

But I don't think the Senator is capable of grasping the concept of being made to feel sub-human. I wish there were a way to make him understand it. I really wish there were words capable of making him feel worthless. Because "cracker" and "honky" and "Chauncey" just don't do it. And they never will.

Yknow how I'm always talking about it's a dry heat out here?

Yeah, I was lied to and as a result you were lied to. Mistakes were made, I blame Rumsfeld. Not that it's his falt, but because he's a lot better at finding people to blame than I am.

It's been raining here. Daily. For weeks. When the rain started it helped to break a "killer" heat wave we were having. Yknow, mid 90s every day, low humidity...yeah, then the rains came. First it took out The Dixie.

(Which is actually turning out to be somewhat salvageable. Details to follow when there are details other than "it's not that bad." Again, I was lied to...this time let's blame Cheney.)

Then it just started to add up. Because it was raining too much to actually let it all evaporate up. As a result, things are wicked green and things labeled as having had water in them at some point in human history actually have water in them again. It's crazy, there was actually water in a laguna out at Laguna last weekend. Who've thunk?

Now, it's more humid in The Q than it is in Chicago. Though, thankfully, it's not as bad up in El Capital.

The rains have become so consistent that all I want to do is drink coffee and listen to Nirvana all day. I think I gave all of my flannels to Goodwill a few lifetimes ago so I'll have to head down there today and see if I can't have it paid forward unto me. This is how bad the situation has become people.

This morning I looked out at the front yard and I couldn't see the Sangre de Cristos through the fog. The fog was so magical I wouldn't have been surprised to see an elk, a buffalo, Sam Spade or a Starfleet Shuttlecraft come out of it. Seriously, we're talking fog somewhere between a western and a noir. Craziness.

Yeah, well that's life. I have a few interviews for retail jobs in the next few days, so the hemorrhaging of cash should end sooner rather than later. I'm not thrilled about this, but it's something until such time as I can land a big kid job. Yknow?

First off, happy birthday nenie.net. It was three years ago today that I started this blog as a way to mark my last year as a bachelor. I started this site up a lifetime ago and it's waxed and waned as life has demanded. But, well, happy birthday nenie.net.

Second, you seen this? SamJack will call people for you. Freakin' brilliant.

8.10.04:8.13.04/Glenwood Springs, CO/
8.14.04/Glenwood Springs, CO to Lawrence, KS/

Our first morning in Glenwood Springs, Nena asked me a question that'd been burning in her mind ever since I picked Glenwood as our honeymoon destination.

"Why here?"

As I switched off the day's edition of Sportscenter OldSchool and we walked downstairs for breakfast I realized I couldn't keep the truth from her any longer.

"Because this town has my favorite rest area in all of the interstate system."

8.9.04/Cubero, NM to Glenwood Springs, CO/

The original idea was pretty easy, drive 480 miles from Cubero to the Western Slope of the Rockies. But, this was 480 miles mostly off the interstate, through the mountains and up over Independence Pass. As we loaded up the car, we the sheer amazingness of the drive that we had before us began to click.

But before we could go on an amazing adventure, we had to deal with money. We'd been given a decent chunk of cash as wedding presents and we figured it wasn't a good idea for us to travel with all this cash on us. There was just one problem, our bank had no branches in New Mexico. No problem, we thought. Nena still had her bachelor account, and while that bank had no branches in Kansas they sure as hell had branches in New Mexico. Sure, we'd just hit a branch on our way out of Albuquerque, deposit our checks and deal with everything when we got home to Kansas. Simple, right?

Wrong.

8.8.04/Cubero, NM/

My first morning as a married man didn't start all that differently from any other morning ... only I was in a casino in the middle of nowhere next to a sleepy, sleepy Nena.

The first thought that went through my head was, "damn, I think I'm going to like this whole being married thing."

The second thought that went through my head was, "damn, Nena's going to make me help her clean up after our wedding."

Guess what? I was right on both counts.

8.7.04/Cubero, NM/

When one fantasizes about their wedding, you never spend any time speculating about the mundane details. You know, those little things that have to get done, like waking up, showering and eating, that spell the difference between reality and fantasy. I guess that's the key, then, isn't it? The wedding of your dreams is fantasy, that is- reality with the mundane excised in the name of art. The wedding of your reality is much less poetic- it requires waking up next to your high school roommate in a hotel on The Rez.

8.6.04 /Cubero, NM/

The story of Friday really begins Thursday night, for as I tried to doze off in Big Papi's guest room for the last time, ever, my phone kept ringing.

It was Underdog. The airline had called him earlier in the night to inform him that his flight to Phoenix had been cancelled. However, he'd called to assure me that come hell, highwater, sledgehammers and WIVES he was going to make it to my wedding ... and he still needed me to pick him up in the morning.

8.5.04 /Cubero, NM/

Thursday was the type of day where seeing a carload of clowns extracting themselves wouldn't have seemed out of place.

People, we're at WedCon 3.

When Nena and I began planning this whole wedding craziness, we had a lot of things to think about. The most important of which was location. Let's look at an abbreviated version of the scorecard we used to decide where to get married.

OK, so three posts in one day, but this one is worth it...for wrasslin' fans.

OK, maybe just Al and Cody. Jeff Hardy has resigned with the WWE.

Yup, the Hardy Boyz are back.

Speaking of drug-fueled sports...OK, OK, so the WWE has "cleaned things up." Right.

Has anyone thought that Floyd Landis's testosterone levels were off cuz he'd just made the Tour de France his personal bitch?

Seriously, what's to say he wasn't jumping around after the race shouting "WHAT!?! WHAT?!? LANCASTER COUNTY WHAAAAT?!?!"

I mean, that might Hulk you out, right?

Yknow, I didn't really expect that much response to yesterday's boob discussion. But, yknow, I'm glad to have it...

Anyway. It's monsoon season here in Aztlán and while that doesn't really mean a whole lot more than really cool cloud formations and brilliant storms (though totally different from the Midwestern Thunderstorms of my youth) sometimes it means devastation.

Last night, a storm rolled into Cubero and it really hasn't stopped. As a result of the torrential rains, there have been mudslides and flash flooding throughout Nena's hometown. Everyone's OK and all their houses are in one piece, but The Dixie has been devastated.

Walls have moved, the foundation is shaken up, and beer is strewn across Route 66. Right now it's not a matter of when the bar will reopen but if. There's 3" of standing water/mud/debris in the bar and apparently it's all kinds of messed up down there.

Nena and I were planning on running down there tonight anyway, I guess now it'll be to record what's left of the bar and perhaps help in the cleanup. If there's anything left to clean up by the time we get out there.

Anyway, have a drink tonight for the end of an era, will you? Nena's pretty shaken up by this and I can't say I blame her. Word.

8.4.04/Cubero, NM/

There is one constant to life at Nena's parents' house- there's always something to do.

The funny thing about constants, is that they're the barebones expectation for life as you know it. Add in a wedding reception to be held in the front lawn in a matter of days and the normal steady buzz of activity that is Casa Fria reaches a deafening level. More than anything else, this buzz makes it almost impossible to sleep when I'm there. It's not that I sleep poorly, because I don't. It's just that I need less sleep when I'm there, I'm up and ready to dive into the hazy light that seems to permeate this place at 6a.

Maybe I enjoy being up that early at Casa Fria because it's the only time when I can get some waking time to myself. Maybe it's because in those moments, the house is still for the only time all day. Maybe it's because my body is afraid to leave me unconscious for long stretches of time with such thin air. I'm not entirely sure.

WARNING: This is perhaps the most disgustingly heterosexual male post I've had in years. It's shallow and hopefully a little bit thoughtful. Proceed at your own risk.

It's been an interesting morning/afternoon/day/evening out on the range. I've spent the better part of the day pondering what it is that makes an actress attractive.

8.3.04/Chicago, IL to Cubero, NM (via Denver, CO)/

My alarm went off entirely too early, but I guess that's the way life is when you're geting up for a 10a flight, isn't it?

I tried my best not to wake the Gunders and for the most part I succeeded- except for Solaris. I was happy to have the company and since I could get it without waking any of the humans, I took what I could get. Little six-toe was my shadow through the entirety of my morning routine; stretch, eat, shower, dress... Thing is, nothing's been that easy these days. Everything feels so much more important, so much more charged, so as I walked out of the shower, to feel my stomach turn yet again in protest of last night's pizza I realized exactly how much I had to do today ... and how little sleep I'd gotten last night to get it done on.

I guessed I'd just have to get it all done on adrenaline and nerves.

Keeping with the "two years ago today" theme I've been rocking lately. Here's what happened two years ago today.

It's funny to think about anniversaries. The past two years have gone by so quickly...but it's all so far away in the past.

When I got married I had no idea what lay ahead. I mean, I thought I knew, but...no clue, yo. The fact that I'm posting this from Santa Fe speaks to that better than anything else.

Well, the house is still on the market. Maybe we get an offer today, maybe it goes back on the market tomorrow. Not really sure. We'll see. All I know is that it's getting harder and harder to pay the bills, yo.

Found a cool job posting yesterday. Hopefully I'll drop the application off on my way to the store. Should be cool.

With my wedding anniversary coming up, and last fall's server meltdown having taken out the bulk of my entries about said wedding, I'll be reposting those this week as a look back at, yknow, what I was doing two years ago.

With that in mind, here's a link to what went down two years ago today. Since this entry survived the meltdown.